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Post by vulpixlb on Oct 10, 2012 18:08:48 GMT
I don't understand why everyone is talking about marriage -- it looks a lot more like Jones seeks out and collects people of interest, stays with them and cares for them throughout their lives, and then at the very end takes... something. Their name, yes, but is that the only thing she takes? Names are easy enough for a human to get after all, so unless she's got some kind of odd storybook inability to make up a new name I'm thinking she takes more than the name. Perhaps something more along the lines of the soul. Perhaps she preserves souls and experiences which would otherwise dissolve back into the aether, trapping them within her. Perhaps she's been doing it for SO LONG that she's grown very, very heavy with all the souls. Another option I'm wondering about is if Jones might be Gaia. And whether Coyote might also be Gaia. And all the people on the planet as well, all part of an etheric system which boils down to one single sentient entity. It's just that Jones is the part of that entity which does introspection, seeing what's going on inside itself. I also think in these lines. I do not know if Tom knows it (the manga came out in 2008 or 2010) but Jones gives a Emanon-vibe. I suggest reading it (search for omoide emanon) but I'll put the synopsis below. Spoilers: Omoide Emanon, originally a book, later a manga, deals about a girl with no name but an infinite life. And she has all the memories of those who came before. She kind of is a wandering eye, traveling the world (Japan) and collecting experiences and giving them to her daughter.The mood strikes me as resembling Jones.
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Post by zimmyzims on Oct 10, 2012 18:12:45 GMT
SO! A fit of estimated years ago versus strip nr. several estimates based on Tom saying eglamor is somewhere in the 30s (I took 35), and further that jimmy and donnie met when they were still furniture size (12) and eggie started losing teeth around 6, like most kids, and then that the second world war was what we were looking at and that that was about 60/65 years ago in gunnertime. next up: about a 100 years ago, Jones meets einstein or something, and then 1800... what happened in 1800 anyway? But wasn't it more likely to be the WWI now? So, it's already 100 years ago?
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Post by csj on Oct 10, 2012 18:32:08 GMT
You DON'T want to know what Anime all this talk of metals is making me think of. Or perhaps you do. pervert.
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Post by descoladavirus on Oct 10, 2012 18:45:46 GMT
I'm expectantly waiting for each new strip. Something is irking me. People commenting "whats the point of this?" "get to the big reveal already!" WHAT?! This is better by far than Jones simply saying "I am ______" Right now we're seeing farther back through Jones history than anyone alive at the court today, possibly farther back than Coyote and Ysengrin know. I think we'll keep seeing back through this til Jones' creation (and I'm fairly certain she was simply created somewhere by something looking exactly as she is now. This is a ride of a lifetime, through her experiences, and I wouldn't miss it for The Coyote and Ysengrin Slapstick Comedy Hour. ™
So, We've seen that Jones has established who the New Medium will be. Spent an evening with Eglamore. Was around when Eglamore finished his training(?) I'm assuming there. At least that seems to be that his training is either, at a point where he must do it by himself, or its an ongoing thing. Was around when Eglamore and Surma broke up and Surma and Anthony started dating (or perhaps even got married) Was at the court when Donny began attending. Brought Eglamore to Gunnerkrigg Court (nice hat Jones.) During world war 1 or 2 (seems 1 to me by the fact that its called a filling factory and not an ordnance factory) she was in Britain and helping out in the war effort under the name Emma and took the name Jones from Edward Jones (who may've been a suitor to her much like Doctor Disaster) at his request (probably not what he meant).
So far we've established that shes immortal, near indestructible and capable of emotion, if somewhat awkwardly. She's had an affiliation with the court for a long while, but from at least world war 1 til now hasn't had any in person dealings with the forest (coyote was surprised by the name Jones after all)
Assuming the previous speculation is correct, Gunnerkrigg Court's events as of this chapter are taking place sometime in 2007. So for the GKC Universe its been: 62 years since World War 2, 89 years since World War 1, 52 years since the death of Albert Einstein and 128 years since his birth. Not a whole lot of time has passed through these flashbacks, so I expect most if not all of this chapter will be us flashbacking through Jones' mind. with the last 2-3 pages consisting of her telling Annie what she is, and why she is at the court. I could be wrong, but if we're going to see and then have the dialogue with the two discussing it, we have to go pretty far back. Likely flashbacks will go from decades to a century to possibly even millenia. She seems a well traveled soul. I think its likely what we see won't be entirely relevant to current story, but will help us understand slowly (baby steps!) who and what Jones is.
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Post by Cassiopea The Grande on Oct 10, 2012 19:38:12 GMT
I think the 'Jones is an elemental' theory is genius. So long as she hasn't had a child, what's to say she couldn't be immortal? Maybe that's why she's so cold toward a lot of men. Maybe that's why Annie gravitates to her.
My theory on her 'taking his name for as long as she can' is that maybe one day the name would not be appropriate anymore. If she suspected she would live for a very long time, maybe she'd meet someone else? Or maybe it would go out of fashion? Maybe she'd need to change it to liv somewhere else?
I dunno... She looks like an Emma.
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Post by sapientcoffee on Oct 10, 2012 20:04:25 GMT
I thought she meant until she found someone else to witness their death/take their name. I wonder if the flashbacks will show if she chooses or how she chooses her new namesakes. I think we've been shown that when Eglamore dies, if she's there, she'll take his name. I might think entirely differently after Friday's update of course! Tom's good at making me want to keep to a vague cloud of possibilities. ah, yes, thanks for the lesson. It's one of those holes in my education. I know robbespiere offed the french nobility of course, but It's in my passive mind still such a boring century. Just the century that the slow countries needed to complete their industrial revolution , and where scientific discovery grinded to a halt, only untill is was broken open again in the 1900s. Hey now, the 19th century (1800s) was no slouch. It gave us The Origin of Species, the periodic table of elements, knowledge of radioactivity, incandescent lights, the telephone, braille, the calculating machine (grandpappy of the computer), the phonograph, electric engine, sewing machines, and even the word scientist. I think it just seems slower because only the big things make general history books. When you look closer, it's like now - things happening all the flippin' time. Constant baby steps, shoulders of giants, etc. =)
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Post by zimmyzims on Oct 10, 2012 20:13:22 GMT
I don't understand why everyone is talking about marriage -- it looks a lot more like Jones seeks out and collects people of interest, stays with them and cares for them throughout their lives, and then at the very end takes... something. Their name, yes, but is that the only thing she takes? Names are easy enough for a human to get after all, so unless she's got some kind of odd storybook inability to make up a new name I'm thinking she takes more than the name. Perhaps something more along the lines of the soul. Perhaps she preserves souls and experiences which would otherwise dissolve back into the aether, trapping them within her. Perhaps she's been doing it for SO LONG that she's grown very, very heavy with all the souls. Another option I'm wondering about is if Jones might be Gaia. And whether Coyote might also be Gaia. And all the people on the planet as well, all part of an etheric system which boils down to one single sentient entity. It's just that Jones is the part of that entity which does introspection, seeing what's going on inside itself. I also think in these lines. I do not know if Tom knows it (the manga came out in 2008 or 2010) but Jones gives a Emanon-vibe. I suggest reading it (search for omoide emanon) but I'll put the synopsis below. Spoilers: Omoide Emanon, originally a book, later a manga, deals about a girl with no name but an infinite life. And she has all the memories of those who came before. She kind of is a wandering eye, traveling the world (Japan) and collecting experiences and giving them to her daughter.The mood strikes me as resembling Jones. Very nice, but considering that he asks her to take it, it sounds more like a proposal to me. But who knows what Tom is after. Not me, that's sure.
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krael
Junior Member
Posts: 95
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Post by krael on Oct 10, 2012 20:36:42 GMT
But wasn't it more likely to be the WWI now? So, it's already 100 years ago? Heh, I think I'll turn this around and say: right now the curve is a nice exponential, and the second war nicely fits the trend, so it must be the second (if anybody asks, I did not tell you to do science like that ) Just signed in to say "Thanks for the awesome graph, Krael!" c: thanks ^^ Hey now, the 19th century (1800s) was no slouch. It gave us The Origin of Species, the periodic table of elements, knowledge of radioactivity, incandescent lights, the telephone, braille, the calculating machine (grandpappy of the computer), the phonograph, electric engine, sewing machines, and even the word scientist. I think it just seems slower because only the big things make general history books. When you look closer, it's like now - things happening all the flippin' time. Constant baby steps, shoulders of giants, etc. =) and thanks for that lesson too! Clearly my subconscious disdain for the 1800s is unfounded and stems from me not being able to place relevant events. (holy cow, btw, I thought charles babage was much older :S)
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psykeout
Junior Member
I will construct a robotic posting device...
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Post by psykeout on Oct 10, 2012 21:26:28 GMT
She's very emma-ish indeed. I can't imagine that she's been "emma" forever. but it's possible. Here have some minimal name research. The name 'Emma' came to England sometime around the 11th century (1000-1100). It comes from the Germanic "Erma," meaning "Whole," "Universal," or "Strong." It's also the name of the protagonist Madame Bovary, which probably isn't relevant but it could come into play. Also I was right about Jones being a boy's name technically because it means "son of john."
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Post by legion on Oct 10, 2012 22:10:14 GMT
19th century also saw the theorisation and then discovery of radio waves, of wireless transmission, and of the principle of radar (even if the first true dedicated radar was invented in the 20th century).
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Post by SpitefulFox on Oct 10, 2012 23:12:43 GMT
Watch as the next page is Jones answering Annie's question with "I'm Jones" followed by the "Chapter End" symbol.
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Post by Eversist on Oct 11, 2012 0:28:59 GMT
Forgive me if this has been asked, I have not read the thread yet... I wonder if she has to take the name of anyone who asks? Watch as the next page is Jones answering Annie's question with "I'm Jones" followed by the "Chapter End" symbol. Here, it's been half-way done for you already! One page chapter.
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quoodle
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Just a man on a planet
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Post by quoodle on Oct 11, 2012 2:46:56 GMT
Does Jones ever speak informally? (like with contractions and such) "I am unharmed" was her response here - it's OK, but it's really formal for what's happened.
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Post by seaofalchemy on Oct 11, 2012 3:30:20 GMT
Does Jones ever speak informally? (like with contractions and such) "I am unharmed" was her response here - it's OK, but it's really formal for what's happened. Kinda reminds me of how Starfire (the alien girl) from Teen Titans speaks, always formal and no contractions, which then reminds me of Weeaboo's post: Duuno how weird or crazy this sounds, or whether it's been said before, but I think the court is either... A. Cloning Jones or B. Jones is an alien Hahaha.
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ryos
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Post by ryos on Oct 11, 2012 8:53:19 GMT
The other possibility being that the subject of her name just never came up, since Coyote seems to just call her "Wandering Eye" no matter what name she uses with others.
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Post by grinningcat on Oct 11, 2012 8:56:07 GMT
Calling it now. Jones is the triple goddess.
As a crone, she mourned Edward Jones-- After which she,
As a mother, she raised Eglamore.
As a maiden, she fell in love with Eglamore.
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krael
Junior Member
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Post by krael on Oct 11, 2012 10:06:21 GMT
Frankly, I find that there is little actual reason to see any romantic tension between the two. Most of it is just whishfull thinking of the boards part if you ask me.
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Post by crater on Oct 11, 2012 12:12:10 GMT
Oh man I never cared about Jones, always thought she was some gimmicky fantasy woman. But the last few panels have been great with this one being particularity touching.
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psykeout
Junior Member
I will construct a robotic posting device...
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Post by psykeout on Oct 11, 2012 19:13:35 GMT
Calling it now. Jones is the triple goddess. As a crone, she mourned Edward Jones-- After which she, As a mother, she raised Eglamore. As a maiden, she fell in love with Eglamore. Oh hey that's a thing. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw that motif show itself around a little. I also doubt that Tom will end this chapter without giving us a real answer.
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Post by Marnath on Oct 12, 2012 0:55:31 GMT
I also doubt that Tom will end this chapter without giving us a real answer. I smell an optimist.
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Post by seaofalchemy on Oct 12, 2012 3:12:42 GMT
I also doubt that Tom will end this chapter without giving us a real answer. I smell an optimist. Tom will give us an answer by the end of the chapter, but I think it will leave us more confused than ever.
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Post by cazador0 on Oct 12, 2012 4:14:45 GMT
I plan on reading this chapter backwards once it finishes.
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psykeout
Junior Member
I will construct a robotic posting device...
Posts: 56
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Post by psykeout on Oct 12, 2012 5:03:40 GMT
I also doubt that Tom will end this chapter without giving us a real answer. I smell an optimist. Ew no optimism is gross. Tom might hide things from us but he's never pulled a bait and switch like this. That's the kind of trick that I don't think he's going to do. There's no point in setting the pins up like this and not knocking them down. Besides, we can only go so far backwards into Jones' story before we figure out what she is. 1) Jones is very straightforward and has no reason to NOT tell annie, unless the room blows up and annie dies and the comic ends. Jones only ever avoided the question the first time because it wasn't the time to know because they were chasing a deranged superchild. And Annie clearly finds it important to know, so she won't let Jones go without being told what she is. 2) I think it would be poor storytelling to give us a big exposition dump like this without telling us how all the information fits together. It gives the reader too much to remember without any means of organizing the information.
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krael
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Post by krael on Oct 15, 2012 8:33:34 GMT
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alexh
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Post by alexh on Oct 15, 2012 8:59:08 GMT
Niiiiiice. No we did not.
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Post by GK Sierra on Oct 15, 2012 10:23:01 GMT
Wow! Great work! How in the eff did you sleuth that out?
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krael
Junior Member
Posts: 95
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Post by krael on Oct 15, 2012 10:45:50 GMT
I do admit it was a terrible effort: I reread the comic, noticed the poor bugger was called edward. The nasty thing was that wiki turned up a whole lot of edward jones's that didn't quite fit the bill. So I had to... better sit down... google "edward jones filling factory" and presto: after thoroughly scanning, I noticed this article in the 4th hit.
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notacat
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That's not me, that's my late cat Mimi: I'm not nearly so cute
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Post by notacat on Oct 15, 2012 15:51:36 GMT
I do admit it was a terrible effort: I reread the comic, noticed the poor bugger was called edward. The nasty thing was that wiki turned up a whole lot of edward jones's that didn't quite fit the bill. So I had to... better sit down... google "edward jones filling factory" and presto: after thoroughly scanning, I noticed this article in the 4th hit. ...and now it's the second, and this thread is the top hit. Our work here is done...no, wait, there's loads more to do ;D
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